Basket-making machine.



No. 635,726. Patented net. 24, I899.

- E. HORTON. BASKET MAKING MACHINE.

(Application filed m. 21, 1899.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet I.

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No. 635,726. Patented Oct. 24, I899.

E. HORTON.

BASKET MAKING MACHINE. (Application filed Mar. 21, 1899 (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

i No. 635,726. Patented Oct. 24,1899.

E. HORTON.

BASKET MAKING MACHINE.

7 (Application filed Mgr. B1, 1899.)

(No Model.) I a Sheets-Sheet a.

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l ATENT EMMET HORTON, OF ELMIRA, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO' THE HORTON BAS- KET MACHINE COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

BASKET- MAKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 635,726, dated October 24, 1899. Application filed March 21, 1899. Serial No. 709,917, (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EMMET HORTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Elmira, in the county of Ohemung and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Basket-Making Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the class of basketmaking machines in which sheets of veneer are assembled around a form and bound by bands of wood which are secured to the top of the basket around the inside and outside of the sides. My Patents No. 530,048, of November 27,1894, and No. 578,876, of March 16, 1897, show machines for making baskets of this kind. The former patent shows a machine designed especially for making what is known as the Olimax basket, in which sheets of veneer are assembled around a form secured to a bottom piece and bound by bands of wood which are secured to the bottom of the basket and also to the top of the basket around the inside and outside of the sides, while my second patent, No. 578,876, shows a machine designed to make the Excelsior basket, in which sheets of veneer are crossed, bent into shape, and bound at the top by bands of wood arranged both inside and outside of the basket.

The object of my present invention is to provide improved means for feeding the top bands to the form in correct position to be secured by the nailing or stapling mechanism to the sides of the basket. In my application for patent filed August 8, 1898, Serial No. 688,138, I have shown, among other things,

band-feeding mechanism in which the bands for binding the top of the basket are arranged in vertical piles side by side, their inner ends being disposed above vertically arranged screws,which are adapted to engage the bands, separate them, and, in connection with suitably-formed disks at their lower ends, feed the forward or inner ends of the bands to channels which guide them into position adjacent to the stapling mechanism, while the outer ends of, the bands are held by vertically arranged supports. The bands lie flatwise in piles, and in order to properly deliver them to the form, theaxis of which is vertical, it is necessary to give them a quarterturn in order that theymay lie flatwise against the sides of the basket while being secured thereto. This necessitates a twisting of the bands, which is undesirable and sometimes interferes with their properdelivery.

The object of my present invention is to simplify the construction of the kind of bandfeeding mechanism shown in my application for patent above mentioned and to render such mechanism more accurate in action. This I do by arranging the inner ends of the bands in gangs or bunches on supports, which are arranged at an angle with reference to the axis of the form. Where the form is arranged on a vertical axis, I preferably make the supports for the inner ends of the bands horizontal and arrange the bands thereon in such manner that they will lie edgewise vertically. Of course it is not necessary that the bands should lie in true vertical planes or that the axis of the form should be vertical, it being important only so far as the broad feature of my invention is concerned that the bands should lie at an angle to the axis of the form, so as to avoid the quarter turn necessary in the mechanism which I have heretofore employed. Feed-screws are arranged, preferably on a horizontal axis, in such manner that they enter between the bands, separate them, and deliver them one at a time from each bunch to a chute, through which they pass to the form adjacent to the stapling mechanism. Thus I am enabled to dispense with means for twisting or turning the bands, and consequently not only simplify the machine, but also render it more accurate.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a basket-making machine similar to that shown in my application for patent above mentioned, the band feeding mechanism, however, being modified in accordance-with my present invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the opsite side of one end of the machine, many of the parts being omitted in order that my improvements may be more clearly illustrated. I

basket-bottom to the form. Fig. 4 is a de-. tail view, on an enlarged scale, showing particularly the devices for guiding and positioning the inner ends of the bands relatively to the form and the nailing mechanism. Fig. 5 is a detail view of the band-feeding mechanism. Fig. 0 shows a side elevation of a part of the support for the outer ends of the bands. Fig.7 is an end View of said support, and Fig. 8 is a top plan view of a portion of this support.

I have shown in the drawings, particularly in Fig. 1, certain parts of a basket-machine, (fully described in my application for patent above mentioned,) which form no part of my present invention, and they will therefore be here only partially described.

The main cam and gear wheel A is mounted in bearings in a main frame B, and it is driven from a band-wheel C by gearing, part of which is indicated by the letter 0.

The basket-bottoms X are arranged in a magazine D and are conveyed therefrom by a crane E, provided with a vertically-movable table F, operated by a lever G, in turn actuated by the wheel A.

0 indicates part of the mechanism for operating the crane. The sides from which the basket is formed are contained in a magazine II, from which they are fed to a gripper I, mounted to slide on a guide-rail J in such manner as to deliver the sides properly to the form. The gripper is operated by the connections j, which are operated by the camwheel A, and these connections also assist in operating other parts of the side-feeding mechanism, as set forth in my application for patent before referred to.

K indicates the stapling mechanism, actuated by a shaft K, geared with the main cam gear-wheel A.

L indicates the mechanism for controlling the clutch.

The wire for forming the staples is fed from reels M by feeding devices m, operated by the pawl m and its connections.

The form N is in this instance arranged vertically and is operated in the same manner as described in my above-mentioned application, part of the operating mechanism being shown at n in Fig. 3.

The inner ends of the bands Z Z for the top of the basket are supported on shelves 0 0, attached to an overhanging horizontal bracket B of the main frame. The outer ends of the bands are carried by a support P,the details of which are shown in Figs. 6, 7, and 8. The upright standard 13 of the support is attached to the front end of the main frame, as indi cated in Fig. 1. At its upper end the standard is bent inwardly, producing a nearly horizontal arm 19, on which is mounted a divided clip 19 which may be adjusted fore and P. The two sections of the clip are held together and clamped by a bolt 19". The rods may be adjusted vertically in their sockets by means of the bolt 19. The lowerends of the rods are substantially horizontal, and they may carry on their outer ends adjustable collars p for preventing the bands from dropping from their supports.

The feed-screws Q Q are secured to a horizontal shaft R, mounted in bearings 0' in the bracket B, and they are formed to enter between the bands, separate them, and feed them toward a vertical chute S, arranged over the form N, close to one side thereof. Followers T slide on the shaft R and are connected by slot-and-pin connections t with levers T, pivoted at t to lugs projectingnpwardly from the bracket B and provided with hamdles i A spiral spring connects the levers below their pivots and presses their lower ends, which carry the followers inwardly, so that the bands are normally pressed toward the mouth of the chute S and into ihe bight of the feed-screws. The outer ends (1 of the screws are arranged to enter between the bands in the gangs or bunches and separate them, and the screws are so shaped as to carry the bands separately inwardly toward the chute, as indicated in Fig. 3. The shaft R carries a bevel-pinion r, meshing with a similar pinion r on a vertical shaft R, geared at 7' with a horizontal shaft R in turn geared at r with a short shaft R driven by a segment of teeth 1' on a plate r driven by the main cam gear-wheel A. By this arrangement the screws are driven at proper times to feed the bands one at a time from each side to the mouth of the chute S. The chute is divided into two parts by a partition U, secured to the bracket B. The outer walls of the chute are formed by the plates to and a, forming part of the main frame, or else secured thereto in any suitable way. By this means the bands 0 and O are delivered separately through the chute, the partition keeping them separated at all times, one of the bands being directed against the side of the form N, while the other band is delivered a short distance therefrom.

In Fig. 3, Y indicates a side piece which has been delivered to the form, and it will be observed that one of the bands is arranged inside the side piece next to the form, while the other band is on the outside of the side piece.

In order to feed the bands through the chute S, I employ a plunger V, provided with a head 1: large enough and suitably shaped to act on two bands at a time and extending rearwardly and pivoted at v to the main frame. It is It is constructed and operated in the manner set forth in my before-mentioned application.

In. order to support the inner ends of the bands at the lower end of the chute S, I employ two band-retainers so and 3 The bandretainer 00 is stationary,while the retainer y is attached to a lever W pivoted at w to the main frame and weighted at 10 The band-retainer :20 receives the inner band and holds it next to the form. The band-retainer y is U-shaped and receives the outer band, the side piece of the basket being arranged, as shown in Fig. 4, between-the band-retainers m and y. The weight '102 normally holds the retainer y in proper position to receive the outer band as it is fed down through the chute and to retain it in position while being nailed. \Vhen the basket is ejected, the bands have been withdrawn from the retainers and nailed to the basket. After the basket is ejected the Wei ht 10 returns the retainer y to its normal position ready to receive another band. This mechanism is also similar to that shown in my application for patent above mentioned.

The parts'ot' the machine are of course organized to operate at proper times to perform the several operations in proper sequence.

The band-feeding mechanism to which my present invention is confined is very simple in construction and reliable in operation. Bunches of bands may from time to time be placed in the support P and shelves 0, the followers T being moved outwardly by the handles to make room for bunches of bands whenever desired. When the handles are released, t'he followers press the bands inwardly, holding them erect and in proper relation to the feed-screws to producea proper feed. The bands are not twisted or turned, but first moved horizontally toward the chute and then vertically into position adjacent to the form and the stapling mechanism.

While I prefer to arrange the ban d-feeding mechanism precisely in the manner shown, yet my invention is not confined to this precise arrangement. If the form were arranged on a horizontal axis, the band-feeding screws would be arranged on a Vertical axis. Furthermore, it is not imperative that the axis of the feed-screw should be precisely at right angles with reference to the axis of the form, but should be arranged at an angle thereto which will not necessitate a material twisting of the bands when moving them into position alongside of the form.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination of a form, means for supportinga bunch of bands, and ascrew for feeding the bands, the axis of which is arranged at an angle to the axis of the form.

2. The combination of a form, a feed-screw, the axis of which is arranged at an angle to the axis of the form, and a chute through which the bands pass from the feed-screw to the form.

3. The combination of a form, a feed-screw, the axis of which is arranged at an angle to the axis of the form, a chute through which the bands pass from the feed-screw to the form, and a plunger for moving the bands through the chute.

4.-. The combination of a form, a feed-screw, the axis of which is at right angles to the axis of the form and means for directing the bands from the feed-screw to the form.

5. The combination of a form arranged on a vertical axis, a pair of feed-screws arranged on a horizontal axis, shelves on which the bands are supported at their inner ends and a chute for directing the bands from the feedscrews to the form.

6. The combination of the shelves for sup porting the inner ends of the bands, the screws for feeding the bands, the followers pressing against the bands, the levers attached to the followers and a spring for drawing the levers together to cause the followers to press the bands.

7. The combination of a form, a shelf for supporting theinner ends of the bands, screws for feeding the hands, a chute through which the bands are delivered from the screws to the form, a partition dividing the chute into two parts, and a plunger for moving the bands through the chute to the form.

8. The combination of a form, means for feeding side pieces thereto, means for feeding bottom pieces to the form, means for supplying securing devices, a horizontally-arranged feed-screw, a shelf for supporting a bunch of bands, a chute for conveying the bands from the shelf to the form, adjacent to the securing mechanism, and means for supporting the outer ends of the bands.

9. The combination with means for supporting and feeding the inner ends of the bands, of a support for the outer ends thereof, consisting of an upright secured to the frame, an adjustable clip secured to an arm of the upright, and an L-shaped rod adjustably secured to the clip.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name.

' EMMET HORTON.

WVitnesses:

W. M. UFFORD, J. L. WORRAN. 

